The Dueling Club
by J.J.M. Fisher
Summary: Hogwarts is a large school with hundreds of students, each with their own thoughts and point-of-view. How are students in a different year and a different house coping with the tension in the school surrounding the rumors of an heir of Slytherin?
1. Part 1: The Notice

**Setting:** During Book 2, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

**Disclaimer:** All characters from Harry Potters series are the property of JK Rowling and used without permission. In the Dueling Club scene, direct quotes were used for Professor Lockhart and Professor Snape from Book 2, Harry Potter and the Secret of Chambers, used without permission.

**Reason for this Fanfic:** I have often wondered what _other_ students from a _different_ year and _different_ house thought, did, and viewed the events surrounding Harry Potter. This is a short fanfiction dealing with that issue, with the main characters of my own creation.

**New Characters:** Chayne and Simone Fischer (twins), Nevin Reed, Ira Thurlow, Brianna Cruise, and Oliver Penn of Ravenclaw; Kyle Meir, Dextra Blackstone, and Darren Eaton of Slytherin; Parker of Hufflepuff; and Walter Bardolph a retired DADA professor were _all_ created by Jacquelyn Fisher and will probably be found in other HP fanfictions by me.

**Date Written:** 2002

**Date Revised: **14 August 2007

* * *

**The Dueling Club**

**Part 1: The Notice**

The Ravenclaw common room was unusually empty with almost all of the house girls not there. The wintry afternoon sun streamed merrily through the tall, arched windows framed with last night's snow giving the spacious room an even airier feel and causing the blue and white décor to appear refine. The few, mostly male, occupants left in the common room were busy with studies, chess, exploding snap, or other things. At one of the tables by the windows were four fifth year students and the table was covered with books, scrolls, and quills as they worked on their Defense Against the Dark Arts assignment.

One of the students, a prefect, was ignoring her collection of books as she scanned the common room.

"Where _is_ everybody?" Simone Fischer asked exasperated. She noticed that besides Feodora Raine, a brunette seventh year winning a chess match against a sixth year, she was the only girl in the common room. "Did I mess a memo or something?"

Nevin Reed, who was sitting next to her at the table, looked up from his book and removed the end of his sugar quill from his mouth to answer. "All of the girls went down to the library awhile ago. Something about Goldilocks signing books and giving out photos of himself."

"Lockhart is a joke." Simone snorted her contempt for the newest Hogwarts professor. "He knows _nothing_ at all about the dark arts. Even Quirrel was better!"

"Eh, but Quirrel's st-st-stuttering dr-dr-drove me in-in-insane," Chayne Fischer, her twin, interrupted with a grin. He gave a shrug of his shoulders. "And I happen to find Lockhart amusing."

"Pathetic is a better word." Ira Thurlow looked up from _Magical Me_, Lockhart's autobiography, and grimaced. "I have tried to ask Brianna out almost a hundred times already, but every time I get her alone, she chatters non-stopped about _him_."

He jerked his thumb at the smiling and waving book cover. Gilderoy Lockhart, dressed in frilly lilac robes, gazed up at the four Ravenclaws, flashing his award-winning smile. Ira raised his voice to a higher pitch, mimicking Brianna. "Oh, Ira, Lockhart _looked_ at me in class today and he _smiled_ at me! Susie says...And on and on and on. Will the madness ever stop?"

"I wonder what spell Goldilocks uses to attract all the girls? I would never be short of dates if I had what he has. I would have to beat girls off with a stick!" Nevin pondered aloud. Simone hit his arm with her copy of _Magical Me_, and Lockhart's likeness disappeared from the cover to fix his smashed nose.

"Ow! That hurt!"

"If any of you ever turn into the likes of _him_," Simone warned in a low voice, "I will personally transfigure you into a picture frame!"

"Ah, Simone, I was only joking," Nevin defended himself as he rubbed his bruised arm. He gave Chayne a pleading look, but her twin was trying to surpress his own laughter.

"What I want to know," Chayne said a moment later after regaining his composure, "is what's up with this assignment?"

He picked up his scroll and cleared his throat.

"_'Explain, in great detail, how I, Gilderoy Lockhart, defeated werewolves in _Wanderings with Werewolves_ and other methods which I, Gilderoy Lockhart, refrained, at the risk of a most painful death, from using to save and protect the lives of the innocent villagers.'_"

"I just bet that smiling freak defeated werewolves," Ira mumbled unhappily from his place beside Chayne.

"_Stuffed_ werewolves from the London Museum of Wizardry, maybe," Simone commented dryly, "but certainly not real, live ones."

The three boys laughed.

"I can just see it now." Chayne raised his wand and wrote a headline in the air. "Daily Prophet-_The Great Defender Against the Dark Arts and Winner of Most Charming Smile, Gilderoy Lockhart, Saves London from Biting Museum Displays. Children are Once Again Safe in London Town._"

Suddenly the entrance to the common room opened, and Chayne flicked his wrist. The writing vanished quickly, and the foursome looked to see who had entered. A crowd of Ravenclaw girls, from first to seventh years, came piling in two at a time, chattering noisily and clutching books or photos to their bosoms.

"He signed my _bag_!"

"Can you _believe_ Hogwarts convinced _him_ to be _our_ teacher?"

"He is _so_ dreamy-"

"-won Most Charming Smile-"

"-all his books and now _he_ signed them!"

Ira shut his own book with a loud slam, and abruptly stood. "There is Brianna. Attempt two hundred and forty-seven begins now. See you guys later."

He weaved his way through the girls towards a particular red-head holding a newly signed photograph of a waving Lockhart.

"If I ever get that girly, please, please, _please_ put a reality spell on me," Simone pleaded with her twin. Chayne gave a lopsided grin and reached across the table to playfully tug her blond hair.

"Whatever you say, sis."

"You know, a love potion-"

"Nevin!" Simone exclaimed in exasperation.

"Okay, so I get the point." Nevin feigned a pathetic expression of dejection while Simone flipped through her book, refusing to ook at him. "Hey, Penn just posted something on the board."

"Let's go have a look see before those Lock-a-holics notice and crowd it," Chayne advised.

Nevin stood and offered his hand to Simone, who swiftly swatted it away. He shrugged with an amused grin on his face, and the three of them walked across the common room to the board.

Every available inch of the board was covered with parchment notices: from class schedules to Quidditch schedules, from school rules to common room rules, club announcements, lost and found, and much more. Oliver Penn, the currant Head Boy, was an obsessive organizer, and in his fourth year he had devised a simple, practical way for Ravenclaws to stay well informed about Hogwarts events. The board was a muggle bulletin board charmed to self-organize the notices attached to it, color-code them according to subject, and remove those that were no longer needed. It was quite a handy board to have around, and it was one of the reasons Ravenclaws always seemed to be 'on-top-of-things' compared to the other Houses.

The newest notice was glowing yellow and was located in the center of the board. The Fischer twins quickly read the small parchment's long, flowing script.

"What?!" Simone and Chayne exclaimed in unison, disbelief evident on their shocked faces.

"A dueling club-"

"-with _Goldilocks_?"

Nevin leaned between the twins and read the notice aloud.

"_'In light of the recent terrifying events occurring in our very halls, I, Gilderoy Lockhart, have finally been granted permission to reinstate the Hogwarts dueling club to refine students' defenses against dark wizardry. The first meeting will be held tonight at 8 o'clock in the grand hall.'_ "

"What is that bugger up to now?" Simone demanded with a moan. "From what the second years tell me, he could not even handle Cornish Pixies – fled right out of the room leaving some Gryffindors to round them up!"

"I wonder if Snape bullied him into it." Chayne pondered aloud. "I was passing the teacher's lounge yesterday and I heard their voices. Goldilocks was going on about how he has made thousands of mandrake potions and could whip up some for the... _petrified _...in the hospital wing. Snape did not seem to believe him."

"I don't either," his twin stated bitterly with a curt nod of her head.

"Well, you guys going to come or not?" Nevin demanded with his hands in his pockets.

"You're going?" Simone said, her voice full of shock and disapproval.

He smiled. "Of course! Why would anyone miss an opportunity to see Goldilocks make a fool of himself _and_ get to make some Slytherins eat slugs? It will almost be as grand as a holiday."

"Count me in," Chayne agreed as he draped his arm on Nevin's shoulders. He looked down at his sister. "What about it, Simone?"

"It won't be anything like Professor Bardolph's dueling club," she hesitated.

Walther Bardolph had been the Dark Arts teacher for their first two years at Hogwarts, and Quirrel had replaced him after he retired. Unfortunately the dueling club had ended with Bardolph's retirement, as Quirrel fainted during his first meeting when his volunteer had merely pointed her wand at him.

"Of course not, sis. This is one big bloody joke!" Chayne laughed. "Well?"

She threw her hands up in the air. "Alright! I will go." Her watch chimed and she glanced down. The little hand slowly shifted from _free time_ to _Potions_. "We should be going."

"Right-o. I left my books on the table," Nevin agreed.

At that moment, a few girls came thundering down the stairwell from the dormitories, chattering and giggling loudly. Simone rolled her eyes. "Goldilock's fan-club is giving me a major headache. Honestly! How thick can you get? He's a fraud!"

The fifth year prefect turned on her heels and strode back to the table to gather her books. Her agitation was visible in the way she walked. Chayne shook his head, blond hair bouncing on his forehead.

"Someone is a bit touché."

Nevin raised his hands innocently. "Don't look at me. She is your twin."

Chayne rolled his eyes.

"By the by, did you read the Potion's assignment?"

The other fifth year Ravenclaw prefect snorted. "Of course. But I am not whispering you the instructions again. Snape nearly caught us last time, and how would it look if one of the Ravenclaw prefects was found cheating? Not good."

"Yeah. They might take away your chances at being Head Boy, and then Simone will be one up on you," Nevin teased. Chayne boxed him in the arm. "Hey! Simone already bruised that arm! Becareful, I'm tender."

"Come off it, you wimp."

They chuckled and crossed the common room for their things. Simone was waiting, watching the other Ravenclaws with a sad yet superior look on her face. Ira had finally managed to get a word in between Brianna's Lockhart rant, and he was actually smiling as they talked over by the scuplture of Rowena Ravenclaw. The Fischer twins and Nevin decided to leave him in the common room, and they left for potions.


	2. Interlude: The Potions Master

**Interlude: The Potions Master**

The dungeon classroom had a cold draft when they entered, and they saw some of the Hufflepuffs bundled up in their robes. They took their usual seats in the front and got out their materials. Within five minutes the rest of the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs had arrived, and Ira joined them at the front table, a triumphant look on his face.

"She said yes!" he exclaimed as he sat down next to Chayne. Then he breathed, "_Finally_."

"Wonderful," Simone mumbled. "And now what?"

"What? I, Ira Thurlow, have Brianna Cruise as my girlfriend. Life is great!"

Nevin pulled Simone's hair, receiving a cold, angry glare. "You don't understand, my little French croissant. Brianna is, like, the most popular fifth year."

"And she is so cute!" Ira added pointedly.

Simone raised a questioning eyebrow. "Brianna? What is so special about her? So she has red hair, give me a break. She snores!"

"She snores?" Ira repeated with surprise.

"Don't mind Simone," Chayne told him. "She does not understand these things." He mouthed _tomboy_ to Ira, and the black haired boy chuckled. Simone gave her twin a suspicious look, but could not answer.

Snape stalked into the classroom in his usual manner, but there seemed to be a new spring in his step. He turned and glared at the class.

"Put away your wands," he barked. "You are in a real magic class. Parker, how long does it take to brew a polyjuice potion?"

The rotund Hufflepuff spurted at the question, his eyes wide with fright.

"Did you not read the assignment _again_, Mr. Parker? Ten points from Hufflepuff." It seemed whatever had put Snape in a good mood did not alieviate his foul temper.

"Does anyone know?" he sneered at the class. His black eyes fell on Nevin, and Simone heard her friend moan under his breath.

"Mr. Reed."

"Ah, two weeks?" Nevin optimistically guessed. Snape's eyes narrowed even more, and his mouth screwed up into a tight, angry line. Nevin quickly changed his answer. "Three?"

"Ten points from Ravenclaw," Snape snapped. "Honestly, you all are a bunch of brain dead, wand waving charmers who wouldn't recognize _real_ magic if it slapped you in the face! The answer is a month."

The potions master spun around, finger pointing accusingly at Simone. "Ms. Fischer, what is the last ingredient that is necessary for a polyjuice potion to be affective?"

"A hair from the individual you wish to transform into," she answered without hesitation. Snape's lip curled up in a slight snarl, and he gave a tight, restrained nod.

"Five points to Ravenclaw for the correct answer. Now, start taking notes. Polyjuice potion is one of the more complex potions..."

The class lasted an hour and a half with Snape dictating notes to the students the entire time. When Snape dismissed them, Nevin was rubbing his sore left wrist.

"Why is potions such a painful class?" he moaned pathetically.

"Buck up," Simone scolded. "If you had read the lesson a head of time, you wouldn't have had to write so much and you wouldn't have lost us ten points."

"Sorry, Miss Priss," the London wizard said sarcastically. "I will try my hardest not to let it happen again."

"Lay off, Simone," her twin scolded her. "You did win five of those points back, and you know Nevin will charm Professor Sprout into awarding him twenty or so points tomorrow."

"I think the Herbology teacher has a secret crush on me," Nevin commented. He raised one eyebrow and gave a perfect example of one of Lockhart's 'charming' expressions.

"How many love potions did it take?" Ira asked with a mischievous smirk. "Ten or eleven?"

"You know I never—" Nevin glanced around at the empty classroom and picked up his books. In a lower voice he continued, "Only three, but I had a fourth ready just in case."

"You are such a fibber, Nevin Reed."

"Well, if you would accept my proposal, Simone Fischer, I would have no reason to chase other women," the dark haired boy teased. Simone swung her potions book at Nevin, but he ducked just in time, laughing.

"I don't mean to interrupt, love birds..." Chayne almost received a light whack from his sister's book on the back of his head but he grabbed it just in time. "...but dinner is in an hour."

Ira scratched behind his ear impatiently. "And I would like to drop my books off at the common room before ten o'clock."

"Alright! Let's go!"


	3. Part 2: Serpensortia

**Part 2: Serpensortia**

The grand hall was darker than it had been at dinner, and the long tables were completely gone. There was, however, a long golden stage against one of the walls. Mingling nervously on the open floor, students from each house waited for the first meeting of the dueling club to begin. The Fischer twins, Nevin, and Ira arrived shortly before eight. It seemed that the entire school had turned out for the event, but the foursome quickly noticed only half of the Ravenclaws were present (all of them seemed to be girls), and Simone surmised that the intelligent male Ravenclaws had decided that Lockhart was a fraud and not worth their time.

"At least there is a good Slytherin turn out. Hey, there's Kyle Meir and his cronies," Nevin announced in a low voice. "I hope I get paired off with one of them. I'll show them a thing or two."

"Eh, Nevin?" Simone asked with concern. "Are you sure you are ready for a dueling match with Meir?"

"Hey, I may not be as smart as you or your clone, but I have been studying some pretty good dueling spells."

The prefect gave Nevin a dubious look, and he just grinned confidently.

Ira was peering through the crowds trying to locate his new girlfriend, and finally he saw her red hair. "I am going to go stand with Brianna."

"Whatever," Chayne said as Ira walked away from them. His eyes were scanning the empty stage. "Is it eight yet?"

Simone glanced down at her watch, which now had a placed marked _dueling_. The little hand was just two hashes away from it. "In two minutes, but Goldilocks never starts anything on time."

It was five passed eight before Lockhart finally appeared, in ornate plum robes no less. Chayne nearly laughed when Lockhart's assistant came into the candlelight. Professor Snape seemed unusually happy that evening with his hands clasped behind his back. His dark eyes kept shifting to Lockhart, and his lips curled into a twisted smile every time.

Lockhart, smiling, waved his hand for silence.

"Gather round, gather round! Can everyone see me? Can you all hear me? Excellent! Now, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions-for full details, see my published works."

Some of the girls giggled, and Simone rolled her eyes.

"Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape! He tells me he knows a tiny little bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don't want any of you youngsters to worry-you'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, never fear!"

"I'm more worried about Goldilocks," Chayne whispered to his twin and Nevin.

"I wonder if they will find all his pieces when Snape is through with him?" Nevin asked in a hushed voice.

Snape was now glaring at Lockhart, his lips curling into a confident sneer, as the two professors faced each other. Both smartly raised their wands like swords in a salute and Lockhart gave a flashy bow. Snape jerked his head. Lockhart was speaking the entire time, explaining what was going to happen.

"On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course. One-two-three-"

Both professors swung their wands from above their heads towards their opponent. Snape's voice could be heard clearly in the silence of the grand hall. "_Expelliarmus!_" Scarlet shot out of his wand and Lockhart was hurtled through the air, hit the far wall hard, and sprawled to the stone floor. Some of the Slytherins laughed and cheered their house patron, and though they despised Slytherins, the Ravenclaw trio couldn't help but share their excitement.

"Ouch!" Nevin hissed happily in the twins' ears. "That has got to hurt!"

"I think Snape has had more practice in dueling than Goldilocks knew," Chayne whispered. "He did not even miss a beat, and his form was perfect. Dad has a book on the art of dueling—"

"—and the disarming charm is one of the first it talks about," Simone finished her twin's train of thought.

They watched as Lockhart stumbled back onto the stage. His robes were slightly disheveled, but he managed a dry chuckle.

"An excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape," he was saying. "But if you don't mind me saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy—however, I felt it would be instructive to let them see..."

"I _bet_ he did, that liar!" Simone murmured under her breath. "There was no time to foresee that move."

Lockhart seemed very hesitant to continue his duel with Snape and was quick to organize the students into pairs. Snape moved quicker than Lockhart, partnering all of the students he disliked with someone from his own house. He reached the twins and Nevin, glaring coldly at them before summoning his fifth years.

"Mr. Meir, you will be partnered with Mr. Fischer," Snape ordered the tall, dark haired Slytherin. Kyle Meir's eyes narrowed as he moved in front of Chayne, his prefect badge reflecting some of the candlelight.

Snape glanced around. "Ms. Fischer, let' see how you do against Ms. Blackstone." Pale-faced Dextra Blackstone was expressionless as she faced Simone. "And Mr. Reed, you will face off against Mr. Eaton."

Tall, slender Darren Eaton smirked at Nevin. "You're going down, Ravenclaw."

"You first," the dark haired wizard shot back.

"Face your partners!" Lockhart shouted from the stage after everyone had been paired off. "And bow!"

Simone gave a short bow, though her eyes never left Dextra's round face, but her opponent did not even so much as incline her head. Chayne refused to bow to Kyle and simply gave a stiff nod that the Slytherin returned with a smirk. Nevin never moved, brown eyes focused on his taller adversary.

"Wands at the ready!" Lockhart hollered along with other instructions.

Simone brought her wand up above her head, left arm extended towards Dextra in the proper dueling form, and the Slytherin merely stood there with her wand pointed at Simone. Next to them, Chayne was poised in an identical position as his twin, and Kyle was as well. Nevin and Darren, however, just stood facing each other with their wands in front of them.

"One...two...three—"

Simone swung her wand around and cried out "_Expelliarmus!_" before Dextra even had time to blink. The Slytherin was knocked screaming backwards into the wall by a red jet of light from the prefect's wand.

Nevin and Darren were both sprawled on the floor; Nevin was burping up slugs from Darren's spell and Darren was as stiff as a board from Nevin's Freezing Charm spell. Simone suddenly ducked a rouge blast of red light as Kyle Meir's spell reflected off her twin's clever shielding charm. Unfortunately, a first year Hufflepuff was standing in the direct path of the reflected spell and was hit with the full blast directly in the chest. She cried out as her feet seemed to root themselves into the floor.

In a blink of an eye, the grand hall collapsed into madness.

"Stop! Stop!" Lockhart screamed, unable to control the students.

Most were lying on the floor from the affects of their opponents' spells, but there were a few others who were still casting spells. Chayne and Kyle were among the latter, as both knew how to block attacks well enough.

"Good match, Fischer," Kyle hissed at Chayne as they lowered their wands in unison. Then the Slytherin peered nonchalantly around the hall to see how others of his house had faired.

"Right back at you," the Ravenclaw prefect responded with difficulty. He spied Simone helping a shaking Nevin to his feet.

"Your Freezing Charm worked," Simone told Nevin proudly. A slimy slug dropped from the London wizard's mouth, and Nevin grimaced with disgust, his body shuddering.

"Bloody...Slytherin...went...before..._three_..." With each word, a slug splattered to the ground, and even Simone had to supress a shiver.

Snape stepped in and began to perform counter-spells to restore order. Nearly ten minutes later, everyone was back to his or her normal selves. Nevin kept swallowing and grimacing, as the taste of the slugs lingered in the back of his throat. The Potions master rounded on Lockhart. His dark eyes were almost gloating and the smirk on his pale face was clearly visible.

"I think I'd better teach you how to _block_ unfriendly spells," Lockhart murmured helplessly. He was avoiding Snape's eyes, and he pointed at the closest pair—Gryffindor second years.

"A bad idea, Professor Lockhart," Snape quickly interrupted. "How about Malfoy and Potter?"

The hall fell deathly silent as the two second years were herded into the center of the large room. Simone glanced wearily at her twin, and Chayne shrugged his shoulders. As the crowd of students moved back, the three Ravenclaws edged closer. The blond Slytherin was receiving advice from Snape while Potter— _Harry Potter_ –stared with wide eyes as Lockhart did a complicated wiggle with his wand and promptly dropped it.

"What is Snape playing it?" Simone whispered in Chayne's ear. "They are _second years_, for goodness' sake."

"I get the feeling Snape doesn't like Potter very much," her twin responded.

Nevin shook his head in disgust. "He doesn't like anyone who isn't in Slytherin. Poor Potter, he is a dead man for sure. He survived You-Know-Who only to be destroyed by the stupidity of a self-absorbed, most-charming-smile madman."

Then the dueling second years faced each other. Malfoy smirked, taunting his opponent. "Scared?"

Harry Potter's eyes narrowed. "You wish."

Lockhart gave the count down. On three, Malfoy cried out, "_Serpensortia!_"

His wand exploded and a long black snake landed just a few feet away from Potter. It raised itself up onto its coils and hissed angrily. The girls in the crowd screamed in horror, and Simone thought she saw someone in Gryffindor robes faint. Potter stood stiffly as the snake peered at him, it's tongue flickering in the air.

Snape pulled out his wand lazily. "Don't move, Potter. I'll get rid of it..."

"Allow me!" Lockhart suddenly interrupted.

He jabbed his wand at the serpent as if it were a sword. There was a tremendous sound and more students screamed, covering their ears. The snake was knocked high into the air, and the students ran back as it landed with a loud _thud_. It was larger than before and angrier. The snake slithered towards the closest victim, a Hufflepuff boy, before anyone could even blink.

Simone held her breath as the snake reared back to strike at the boy, standing no more than five feet to her left. Someone stepped backwards on to her foot in their haste to get away from the snake. Suddenly the Ravenclaw prefect found herself on the floor, pain shooting up her leg from being trampled on. Chayne and Nevin hulled her back to her feet just in time to see Potter race towards the snake. He opened his mouth and a deep, blood-chilling hiss came out.

The snake hesitated, turning towards the hissing boy. Then it dropped docilely to the floor, peering almost submissively at Potter. The shaking Hufflepuff was glaring at Potter. Then his quivering voice filled the awkward silence as he demanded, "What do you think you're playing at?"

He turned sharply on his heels and pushed his way through the crowd. The Hufflepuffs followed him after giving Potter angry glares. The boy who lived stood in the center of the grand hall with a look of total bewilderment on his face, as if he did not understand why the Hufflepuffs were so angry and the rest of the students were staring at him with fear in their eyes.

With a sharp look, Snape came forward with his wand and the snake vanished. Two other Gryffindors suddenly grabbed Potter by the arms, leading him through the crowd and out of the hall. All eyes followed them. There was a subdued hush on the crowd of students.

"Well. That was exciting," Lockhart said with a nervous laugh. "That will be all tonight. Yes, that will be all tonight."

Snape peered at the fidgeting professor with disdain. "Return to your dormitories at once," the Potions master ordered. "Any student found in the halls after ten will have ten points docked from their house. Prefects!"

"Ravenclaws!" Simone immediately called out as she raised her hand into the air.

The prefects of Slytherin and Gryffindor were already doing the same thing. The Ravenclaws present made their way over to where the Fischer twins and Nevin were standing. Their faces were long and, for once, the girls were not chattering.

"Follow us," Chayne ordered the Ravenclaws. Ira and Brianna were at the back of the group as the twins led the Ravenclaws out of the hall.

Nevin leaned in close to Simone. "I didn't know Potter was a parselmouth," he muttered.

The two prefects shrugged.

"I don't think anyone did," Simone answered quietly.

They entered the common room and were immediately bombarded with questions from those that had not attended the meeting. The girls found their voices again and began to retell the events. The twins, Nevin, Ira, and Brianna sat down at their usual table. The red head's eyes were very wide.

"Do you..." she began hesitantly. "Do you think Potter is the... the heir of Slytherin?"

"Could be, I guess." Chayne shrugged. "But then, so could anyone else. Salazar Slytherin lived one thousand years ago, you know."

"But parselmouth is not a common gift," Brianna countered. "Not just anyone can talk to snakes. Only dark wizards can."

"Oh, come off it, Brianna," Simone snapped impatiently. "I seriously doubt that famous Harry Potter is an evil dark wizard. He is just a second year, after all, and he comes from the Muggle world."

"How do you know that?" the red head demanded.

"I am a _Prefect_," the blond retorted sharply. "And the prefects from the different houses _do_ have meetings, you know."

Brianna rolled her eyes and stood up. "Whatever." She walked off to join another group.

Ira was fuming. "Now what did you do that for?" he demanded from a startled Simone. "If she breaks up with me because of you, so help me, Simone, I'll...I'll..." He floundered for a convincing threat, eyes flashing.

"Turn her into a beetle and squash her?" Nevin offered off-handly with a smirk in Simone's direction.

"Yeah! I'll turn you into a beetle and squash you!" Ira stormed off to the boy's dormitory, and Simone glanced at her twin and Nevin.

"What did I do?"

"Never mind, sis," Chayne said with a hint of a smile on his lips.

Simone glanced at her twin then Nevin, raising her hands in confusion. "What? I just don't think that Potter is the heir of Slytherin. After all, wouldn't Salazar's heir be in the Slytherin house? Potter is in Gryffindor, for heaven's sake! Gryffindors are a lot of things, but I've never heard of a dark wizard that was from Gryffindor."

"Who is up for a game of exploding snap?" Nevin abruptly changed the subject. Chayne shook his head. "Alright then. Chess?"

"Chess it is," the blond prefect answered his friend. "And no cheating this time, Nevin."

The dark haired wizard gave Chayne a roguish grin. "But of course, my good fellow."

Simone stood.

"Where are you going?" her twin demanded.

"To do a bit of reading. I will see you boys in the morning."

But before she had even finished talking, the boys were involved with their chess match. Simone smiled and went down into the girls' dormitory. It was empty and quiet, and she sprawled out on her blue and white comforter with her chosen book—_The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts_.

THE END


End file.
